Migration is about people, not numbers, pope says

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Migrants seeking a better life in
other countries must not be viewed with suspicion but rather defended and
protected, no matter their status, Pope Francis said.

International cooperation is needed “at every stage of
migration,” especially for countries where higher influx of migrants
“often exceeds the resources of many states,” the pope said June 14
in a message to participants of the Holy See-Mexico Conference on International
Migration at the Casina Pio IV, a villa located in the Vatican Gardens.

“I would like to point out that the issue of migration
is not simply one of numbers, but of people, each with his or her own history,
culture, feelings and aspirations. These people, our brothers and sisters, need
ongoing protection, independently of what migrant status they may have,”
he said in the message read by Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Vatican foreign
minister.

Thanking participants for their work “on behalf of the
needy and the marginalized in our society,” the pope said the current
challenges in confronting the migration crisis “demand a change in
mindset.”

“We must move from considering others as threats to our
comfort to valuing them as persons whose life experience and values can
contribute greatly to the enrichment of our society,” he said.

He also called on the international community to defend the
rights of migrant children and their families who are “victims of human
trafficking rings and those displaced due to conflicts, natural disasters and
persecution.”

“All of them hope that we will have the courage to tear
down the wall of ‘comfortable and silent complicity’ that worsens their
helplessness; they are waiting for us to show them concern, compassion and
devotion,” he said.

In his address at the conference, Cardinal Parolin said that
while most U.N. member states are continuing “paths of dialogue and
negotiation” on the protection of migrants and refugees, the changing
political climate “has made the issue more complex.”

The steps taken so far, he added, can hopefully
“reverse the logic of the globalization of indifference, replacing it with
the globalization of solidarity that attends to the needs and the just
expectations of people and know how to help those in the human family who find
themselves in need and in situations of vulnerability.”

However, the cardinal also said that people’s rights to live
in their land must also be protected to “avoid the flow of
uncontrolled migration.”

Among the concerns raised by Videgaray was the
anti-migration efforts taken by the U.S. government, including the separation
of families and the Trump administration’s decision to abandon the U.N. Global
Compact for Migration, an agreement that sought to improve the global flow of
migration and refugees.

Although dismayed by the U.S. government’s decision “to
abandon the conversation,” Videgaray said Mexico remained
“undeterred” in its commitment to protect the rights and dignity of
migrants.

He also expressed concerns regarding the separation of
families, saying “there are 2,000 cases of children separated from their
parents” in the United States.

“We understand the legal foundation of this action.
However, we cannot agree to actions of this nature,” he said.

After the conference’s first session, Cardinal Parolin told
journalists that the Vatican shared Mexico’s concerns regarding policies that
are “violations of rights of peoples and families.”

“Unfortunately, the general atmosphere isn’t the most
positive, and that is why I insisted on a change of image regarding migration;
from a solely negative image to a positive image.”

Regarding the United States’ decision to exit the Global
Compact for Migration, Cardinal Parolin told journalists that “it wasn’t
good” and that “everyone must participate” in finding a solution
to the migration crisis.

The issue of migration, he said, is a challenge that the
international community cannot afford to ignore.

“It is a problem, or rather a global phenomenon, that
needs everyone’s participation. Nobody can turn their back,” Cardinal
Parolin said.

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